The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1887-10-20
THAT SWAMP LAND TAX.

A>>]AA ~ " 81 "1A A~7A'D AN~A'
Hon. c. IL. Smith, of this place, has
written the following letter to the Her
on Lake News, which appeared in the
last issue Of that paper:
In your paper dated Oct. 1st my es-
teemeu friend Hon. E. SevatSOn takes
exceptions to my RENAL ks to you rela
tive to the law exempting the swamp
land grant of the st. Paul Il Chicago
Il. Il. Co. from taxation for years prior
to 1854.
IL our conversation no allnsion was
mad. to the alleged forgery or inser.
tiOn of the words land others'' IN the
title of the bill after its passage. am
not al appol"gist for Governor McGill.
If lie signed the bill after he had been
informed OF the change in title think
tie made Il mistake even though such
change did not change the cOnstruc.
tiOn of the law.
The law is chapter 1y9 general laws
Of 1887. The title reads IAN act to
relieve settlers and Others from pay
inpnt of certain back taxes.''
1t il claimed that the words land
others" were inserted after the bill
passed Does this change, if it was
made, effect the law?
The first section of the law reads
''That all back taxes ON lands of the
st. Paul and Chicago Ra;lrond compa-
ny included in the swamp land grant
made by the state to that company
which are and remain the property of
that company for amy and allyears prio:
to 1884 he, and the same are hereby re-
mitttd. and the state auditor is hereby
directed to place said lands upon the
tax lists for the year 1884 and subse-
Qment years. and cause the taxes of
those years to be duly assessed thereon
pursuant to the statute in such case
made and provided"
The secund section remits the taxes
on lands purchased by settlers prior to
their purchase.
"a rose by any other name would
smell aS sweet"
Members of the legislature are sup
posed to make themselves familiar
with the provisions of bill as we'll as
its title, and the first section clearly re.
lates to others than settlers. \ proper
title for the bill would read "An act to
relieve the st. Paul 4 Chicago r. II
Co. and others fr"m the payment of
certain back taxes.'' The effect of the
law would. however. l:- Just the same
as under the present title. If any mis-
take was made, the legislature should
ut least receive apOrtiOn OF the cen-
sure.
But the impression which intended
to convey was this: that Judging from
the lands with which l was familiar
the taxes for 1854 and the subsequent
years were all that the owners could
afford to pay. and shat it was much
better for the state and all concerned
to except the taxes for these years
rather than to tax so heavily, that the
r. r. Co. would allow them to forfeit
for the non payment of taxes. The
best OF these lands had been sold to
settlers prior to the passage of this
law and the law was intended to ex-
pmpt them from taxes for all years
prior to their purchase.
The lands left in the hands of the
Il. Il. Co. were very poor. AIN only
speaking OF lands which l know, those
in Mobiles and the western part of
Jackson counties) and not worth the
taxes for ten years.
The r.. II. Co. has paid the taxes for
the three years OF these lands and has
since sold the most of them 1T from
75cts to $l.5O per acre.
II MIR. SevatsOn wishes to purchase
he can still get some of these sO-calIed
lands at 75cts per acre, but he would
find upon examination that they were
under from two to four feet of water,
even now after two very dry seasons.
Mr.. SevatsOn refers to the swamp
lands i'm the town of Christiania. There
are only three forty acre tracts in the
town and these are isolated tracts, and
were not, think, included in the
grant to the st. Paul & Chicago II. r.
Company.
It he will examine the lands on the
south side of lO3-37 he can find nearly
whole sections which in ordinary sea-
sons are covered with water, and these
are fair sample of the lands belong
ing to the company upon which taxes
were RENTED by this bill.
Yours Trnly,
c.. II. SMITH,.